Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Some hen houses are an exercise in geometry, but they don't
need to be.
Nearly completed chicken coop.
For our chicken coop, I used a product called Star Plates
available from Stromberg's Chickens. It allows for building a
floor in the shape of a pentagon and an extremely strong and
secure shelter. It also, per square foot, works out to be less
expensive than many other approaches plus allows for a
natural draft when used with a small cupola.
No matter which way you'd like to build a coop, I'd like to
convey a few aspects of coops that I believe to be important.
First, a coop needs to have a smooth floor, made out of
plywood, for example, that is well coated with polyurethane
or a similar substance that is impervious to moisture and
easily cleaned or disinfected. The floor should be strewn with
wood shavings, peat moss, or a similar clean absorbent
material that is replaced anytime it becomes excessively damp
or dirty in order to prevent infections. Some experts
recommend against using hay, but that is precisely what we
